Into The Stars
by PhineasFlynns
Summary: When cousins start going missing, Lilo and Stitch are at a complete loss as to whom is the culprit. Nobody -not even Finder- is able to locate the missing cousins, and the duo gets increasingly worried. When relationships are tested, cousins are disappearing, and friends become enemies, what is an earth girl and her best friend to do?
1. Everything Will Be Fine

**Hiya! I've been reading Warmal's story 'Between Us, Rings' obsessively since it's fantastic and you should definitely check it out, and I realized that I miss writing for this series, so I thought I'd try again! I hope you like it! This is the first time I've written anything for this series in years! **

"Bye guys!" Lilo called as she rushed down the steps, swinging her backpack onto her shoulder as she left, turning her head slightly to wave as the other girls took the stairs slower than she had

Without giving them the chance to respond she turned and headed in the direction of her home, brown eyes shining happily as she walked, humming softly to herself. Things were going great for the sixteen-year-old; she was at the top of her hula class -alongside Mertle- she was getting excellent grades in most of her classes -including math, since she asked for Jumba's help, even though she was pretty sure evil genuis help might be cheatish- and there was absoloutley no universe threatening calamities happening. There hadn't been any for ages.

And the best part about Lilo's already fantastic day- something that made it even more fantastic; Stitch.

"Aloha Lilo" he smiled warmly, as she reached their agreed meeting place

"Aloha, Stitch" she smiled, kneeling in front of him and pulling him into a gentle hug, pressing their lips together quickly. The alien chuckled softly when they parted, black eyes shining, and she flicked him playfully on the nose. "Come on, we should get home"

"Ih" he agreed, turning and dropping onto all fours, breaking into a run when the girl took off

When they reached home they were greeted by Jumba, whom was seated on the couch with Pleakley, their eyes glued to the screen. Pleakley was clearly terrified, while Jumba seemed vaguely amused. A quick glance at the screen confirmed they were watching a horror movie -one usually watched on Family Fun Night- and Lilo couldn't help but laugh- doubling over when Pleakley let out a bewildered screech of terror.

"Pleakley, how many times have you seen this movie?" Lilo teased as she walked past them, grabbing one of her records off the coffee table

"Thirty seven" Jumba replied, gaze finally leaving the screen to settle on her "Little girl looks happy" he noted "Is anything happening today?"

She shrugged her shoulders

"Today is just a really good day" she replied honestly "Things are still going great with Mertle" she informed them

"Ih" Stitch agreed at their surprised looks "Mertle naga being mean" he shrugged, tone betraying his surprise

She rolled her eyes and ruffled the fur on top of his head gently

"Yes, I know you think it's surprising" she agreed easily; it was understandable that they were doubtful. After years of hating each other, it had been hard to believe when Mertle had offered an apology. However, Lilo had accepted it, and from there things progressed slowly. Mertle seemed cautious; like she thought Lilo would hate her again if she did anything wrong.

She skirted around on thin ice with Lilo, and eventually things felt normal between them- like things had been before they had a falling out and stopped speaking. Well, civilly, anyways. Now, the two were very close. Not as close as she was to Victoria, but still close enough to hang out after school, do homework together, and they even had sleepovers here and there. Some days Lilo woke up expecting it to all be a dream, and to have Mertle still hate her, but every day when she got to school Mertle was waiting with a warm smile and some stories to share.

Pleakley reached for the remote, grabbing it and pausing the movie before turning his attention upon her

"We just worry about you" he told her

"I know" she smiled "But things are okay now, I promise" she passed back in front of the tv, heading for the hallway "I'm going to call Victoria and work on my homework. If you need me, you know where I'll be"

She received mumbles of agreement and headed to the lift, Stitch climbing on with her, smiling up at her during the entire ride. When they stepped out she locked the lift -just in case- and kicked off her sandals, tossing her backpack onto her bed and then falling onto bed next to it. Stitch climbed up next to her and offered a smile, which she gladly returned, reaching up and scratching behind his ear.

"I love you" she whispered tenderly

"Meega love you too, booji-boo" he replied, leaning down and gently pressing his lips to hers

When they parted she sighed heavily and turned her head, gaze falling upon her backpack. Stitch flicked his gaze to the bag as well and both were silent for a few moments

"I should probably do my homework, huh?" she sighed

"Ih"

With a resigned groan she reached out and grabbed the bag, sitting up and she pulled it toward her and fished out her books.

**BOOMBABY**

It was late that night when Nani finally got home, having had to work overtime since the other employee cancelled last minute, and a replacement couldn't be found. She didn't mind having to stay late, though; it was extra money in her pocket, and it didn't happen very often. Lilo looked up when she heard the front door close

"Oh, Nani is home. We can talk more at school, okay?"

"Okay" Victoria replied happily "Don't forget to ask her about the sleepover for tomorrow night"

"Of course" Lilo grinned "Goodnight, Victoria"

"Night, Lilo. Night Stitch!"

"Night!" he called back

Lilo ended the call and hopped off the bed, tossing the communicator onto the mattress before stepping onto the lift, waiting for Stitch to climb on with her before unlocking it and allowing it to carry them down. When she stepped off she headed straight to the kitchen, where David was setting a box of pizza on the counter.

"Aloha David" she greeted

"Aloha Lilo" he turned and offered her a warm smile "Nani will be back in a moment, she just wanted to change quickly"

Lilo nodded and took a seat at the table, and David did the same, Stitch climbing up to sit on the table, rather than on a chair. Not a sound was made between them, but it was a comfortable silence, and within a few minutes Nani was entering the room.

"Aloha Lilo" she greeted, stooping to press a kiss to her sisters forehead

"Aloha Nani" she greeted, smiling as Nani ruffled the fur on Stitch's head as she walked past him "How was work?"

"Exhausting" she responded with a sigh, pulling open the cupboard and groaning when a hinge snapped off "David the-" She didn't even finish her sentence before Stitch was on the counter in front of her. Within seconds the hinge was fixed. She offered a tired but warm smile "Mahalo, Stitch"

He flashed a grin in response, purring when she scratched his chin gently, before reaching up to grab the appropriate amount of plates from the cupboard.

"Lilo, is Victoria coming for dinner?" she asked

"No" she replied "But we were wondering if we could have a sleepover tomorrow?" she asked hopefully

Nani swung the cupboard shut and turned, fixing her sister with a mock stern expression

"Did you finish your homework?"

Lilo giggled

"Yes" she replied

"Clean your room?"

"Yes" she replied once more

Nani pretended to think about the question, eyes shining mischievously at her younger sister

"Did you... Take out the trash?"

"Nani" she whined playfully, swiping a plate from her sister

"Yeah, that's fine Lilo" she nodded

"Thank you" Lilo flashed a grin and opened the pizza, the three occupants of the room gasping when they realized Stitch had climbed into the box

"Stitch!" all three cried

He chuckled nervously, offering a wide smile

David snickered

"I'll order another pizza"

Nani stuck her tongue out at the little blue alien and closed the lid on him before turning her attention back to her sister

"So how was your day?" she asked

"It was good" she replied "Stitch picked me up, which was nice" her cheeks tinged a light pink as she spoke, and Nani smirked when she noticed

"Lilo" she asked, playful tone clear in her voice as she leaned toward her sister "Do you and I have to have a talk about the birds and the bees?"

"Nani!" the girl practically screeched, cheeks flaring a deep red, and Nani let out a howl of laughter, all but falling into a chair as her sister glared at her, embarrassment wafting off of her. She dropped into a chair beside her older sister, and both turned their heads when Stitch poked his head out of the pizza box, sauce covering his nose and various other parts of his body

"Gaba birds and bees have to do with Meega and Lilo?" he asked, black eyes shining in confusion

Lilo and Nani stared at him in silence for a moment before Nani began laughing once more. Lilo giggled and reached over, wiping the sauce off his nose and shaking her head at him

"Nothing, Stitch. Nani was teasing" she shot a playful glare at her sister

Nani fixed her gaze on the duo and couldn't help but sigh. She regretted everything she had done to them when she found out about their relationship, but she had been scared. She had never in her wildest dreams thought her eleven-year-old sister would wind up in a relationship with an alien- let alone Stitch. She had panicked and separated them, which she now knew was not the right thing to do. Time had helped, as had several talks with Lilo. But what had really finalized her decision that she could deal with this, and that this was okay, was when Stitch had come to talk to her while Lilo was out.

_Flashback_

_Nani looked up curiously when she heard a timid knock on the door, wondering who on earth it could be. She tossed her book onto the coffee table and made her way to the door, pulling it open and raising a brow, glancing down when a throat was cleared._

_"Oh" was all she said, and Stitch visibly flinched, taking that as a bad thing_

_"Can... Can weega talk?" he asked timidly_

_She blinked, staring down at him for a moment, then flicking her gaze to the outside, where rain was pouring down. He was quite obviously soaked, and was completely filthy, and he had obviously left after it had already been raining since he was absolutely covered in mud. He was on a mission, and she knew she had to hear him out. With that in mind she muttered_

_"Yeah" and stepped back, allowing him entrance to the house he hadn't been inside for several weeks. "Wait here" she requested as she swung the door shut, making her way into the hallway and toward the closet, grabbing a towel for him._

_When she returned she handed it to him, and he smiled __gratefully_

_"Takka" he murmured_

_She nodded, and lead him into the kitchen where he hopped up onto a chair. She grabbed a mug of coffee for each of them, sliding his toward him and receiving another murmur of thanks as she sat._

_"So, lets hear it" she prompted after a few minutes_

_"Meega... Soka" he began, lifting his head to meet her gaze "Meega know weega hurt you" his ears dropped to hang in shame "That was never our intention. We... were selfish- weega didn't think about how being Booji-boo's would affect our Ohana... And especially yuuga" he looked down "Meega... Lilo is butifa... Meega would never hurt her... Meega tay Lilo..." he fell silent_

_"Tay..?" she asked slowly_

_"Love" he replied_

_She was silent for a moment_

_"Stitch... I'm going to ask you something, and I want you to tell me the truth, and only the truth, okay?"_

_"Ih"_

_"Why do you love Lilo?" she asked "Why her, and not some other experiment"_

_His eyes widened in shock at the choice of question, and it took a moment for him to answer_

_"Lilo... Was meega's first achi-baba" he replied slowly "Meega's first Ohana. She was the first person to care about Stitch... About what happened to Stitch... About where meega was, and if meega could possibly be in danger" he sighed "Lilo is most important thing in the galaxy to meega, and meega would protect her with meega's life. Lilo is butifa, and she's meega's booji-boo. When meega think's about who meega would spend the rest of meega's life with, the only person meega picture's is her" he looked up, meeting Nani's gaze now "Meega know isa meega's fault if anything happens to her... But that chance would never come. Meega promise. Chi chubida"_

_When Lilo came home that night, she was greeted by Stitch, and all she could do was sob and thank her sister on repeat as she clung to them both, and Nani knew she had made the right choice._

_End Flashback_

Seeing them now only backed up that Nani had done the right thing in letting him come home; they were perfect for each other. And even though her sister would get treated strangely when people found out -which Nani didn't like the thought of- she knew Stitch would stand by Lilo through it all, and Lilo would be okay. She knew everything would be okay, as long as they had each other and their Ohana.

And when Stitch looked over, pizza sauce dripping off his nose, and offered her a wide smile, she knew without a doubt that everything would be fine.

If only she knew how wrong she was.

**Reviews are love~**


	2. Something Is Wrong

**Yay, new chapter! It's a little bit shorter than the other one, but I didn't know what else to add and I didn't want it to feel crappy and forced. **

"Hi Victoria" Nani greeted as she entered the kitchen to find the redhead seated at the table, scarfing a bowl of cereal

Victoria offered a smile, swallowing what was in her mouth before offering a cheery response

"Good morning, Nani" she waved "I hope you don't mind I'm here, Lilo told me to come early and drop my stuff off so I didn't have to carry it around all day"

"I don't mind at all" she assured the girl "Where is Lilo?"

"She's upstairs getting ready with Stitch"

Nani nodded, walking over to the doorway and leaning out

"Lilo, Stitch! You're gonna be late for school!" she called

"Coming Nani!" Lilo yelled back

"Soka!" Stitch called

Nani wandered back into the kitchen and grabbed a mug of coffee, pouring one for Stitch as well. When Stitch came rushing into the room a moment later, she held out the mug, and the alien took it with a grateful cheer. Nani turned her attention back upon Victoria as she flicked the kettle on to boil

"Would you like a tea, Victoria?" she offered

"Yes please" she flashed a grin

Silence fell back over the kitchen, and a few minutes later Lilo came rushing into the room. She offered a smile to her sister, and Nani couldn't help but smile fondly as she rolled her eyes, finishing up the teas she was making and handing each girl a thermos.

"Have a good day, girls" she pressed a kiss to Lilo's forehead and ruffled Stitch's hair, pausing to kiss Victoria's forehead before she slipped out of the room. A moment later, they heard the front door open, and then slam shut.

Lilo turned her attention upon Victoria

"Hungry?" she teased, and her friend stuck out her tongue "Come on, we can't be late" she made her way to the counter and grabbed an apple turnover for her breakfast, and by the time she made it to the front door Victoria was ready to go.

The raven stepped into her shoes and made her way to the doorway into the hallway, turning her head in the direction of Jumba and Pleakley's room.

"Bye Jumba!" she called "Bye Pleakley!"

There were enthusiastic shouts of goodbye from Pleakley, and a few mumbled goodbye's from Jumba, and Lilo couldn't help but giggle. With that out of the way she swung her backpack up onto her shoulder and they headed out, Stitch pulling the door shut behind them. As happened every day, when they were halfway to school Stitch stopped, climbing up onto a large boulder so he was eye to eye with Lilo, and he offered a warm smile.

"Goodbye, Stitch" she whispered, eyes expressing just how much she hated having to leave him behind "I'll see you tonight, okay?" her hands reached up to cup his cheeks, one slipping back to scratch behind his ear

He couldn't help but purr, and she giggled

"Have a good day. Meega see you later, boojiboo" he whispered, pulling her forward so their lips could meet

She pressed closer for a moment, pulling away with a sigh and a small smile

"Bye, boojiboo"

With that she turned and continued on her way to school, Victoria calling a cheerful goodbye to the alien as they left, and he watched until they were gone. Once they were gone, he was unsure what to do. His decision was made for him when Felix came barreling through the undergrowth a moment later, terror written clearly on his face. Stitch's eyes widened in shock and he stepped into the green aliens path, holding his hands up

"Cousin!" he cried

The alien skidded to a stop in front of Stitch, eyes wide and fearful, chest heaving up and down with his frantic breaths

"Stitch" he breathed, and Stitch swallowed thickly at the tone of undisguised fear in his cousins voice

"Gaba?" he asked worriedly "Cousin hurt?"

Felix rapidly shook his head

"Meega- Meega just saw somebody take Slushy!" he cried

**BOOMBABY**

"Lilo?" Victoria asked curiously, raising a brow at her friend "Have you heard anything I've said?" when she received no response she spoke louder "Lilo!" still no response, and she pulled her to a stop in the hallway, waving a hand rapidly in front of her friends face "Hey!" she cried

Lilo shook her head and met her friends gaze

"Huh? Oh. Sorry Victoria" her cheeks turned red in embarrassment

"It's fine" she waved it off "Are you okay? You've been off all day"

Lilo shrugged helplessly

"I just... Feel like something is wrong, that's all" she sighed heavily "I know it's probably nothing" she shook her head to clear it "Anyways, what were you saying?"

Victoria blinked, gaze scanning her friend over, judging whether or not she should continue. Seeing the honest curiosity in her friends eyes made her sigh and offer a smile before continuing her story, slightly disconcerted by what her friend had said.

Every time Lilo said something felt 'wrong', something bad happened. And now that the idea was in her head, every time they rounded a corner Victoria expected to be attacked. By who, she didn't know. All she knew was if Lilo said something felt wrong, then something very bad was about to happen.

**BOOMBABY**

It was barely an hour later, while she was in class, that Lilo heard the frantic 'barking' that she recognized as Stitch, and dread pooled in her stomach at the realization that she had been right. She swallowed thickly and turned in her chair, and saw Victoria's face go white when she too recognized the sound. Lilo's hand shot into the air

"May I be excused?" she asked, a tinge of desperation in her tone

The teacher looked surprised at her sudden outburst, as well as the desperation in her voice, and he only nodded. She was out of her seat within a second, muttering to Victoria to stay put before she turned and rushed out the door.

"What's happening, Stitch?" she demanded as soon as she cleared the doorway, finding the blue alien waiting outside the door, worry painted across his face

"Slushy is gone!" he told her, distress obvious in his tone. He grabbed his ears and pulled and let out a frustrated noise, remaining silent as she scooped him up and took off out of the building as fast as she could.

Once they were in the forest she took a seat with him in her lap, and wrapped her arms around him firmly. He stiffened briefly in surprise, but barely a second later his arms were around her- all four of them.

"It's okay" she whispered to him, gently stroking him

He shook his head

"Meega can't even sniff cousin out! Meega can't sniff him, or the people who took him-"

"Then how do you know he's gone?" she asked in confusion

"Felix saw" he replied, pushing back slightly so he could meet her gaze "Meega believe him. Isa hard to fake that kind of fear"

She nodded her head, and Stitch looked down. She leaned forward and pressed her lips to the top of his head gently

"It's okay" she whispered "We'll find him" silence was her answer "We should go tell Jumba"

"Ih" he agreed

**BOOMBABY**

"Experiment 523 is being missing!?" he cried "Impossible! I designed these creatures for to be unstoppable!" he protested adamantly "He is being more than capable of taking care of himself"

"Jumba, Felix saw him get taken!" Lilo insisted

Jumba stared silently at her for a moment before sighing heavily

"Very well, little girl. I will be getting in contact with my sources and being finding out if they know anything"

Her tone had softened considerably when she replied

"Thank you, Jumba"

"Yeah, yeah" he muttered, waving his hand dismissively

Taking the hint Lilo took Stitch's hand and lead him out of the room, swinging the door shut behind them. Jumba watched them leave until the door closed and then sighed heavily, turning his attention upon his computer

"So 523 is missing, huh?" he muttered to himself, turning to his gaze fell upon a list, containing only item; the number 621. The evil genius grabbed a pencil and beneath it carefully wrote 523.

**Reviews are love darlings~**


	3. Longer List Than We Thought

**Voila! This one is a bit shorter than the others, and I apologize for that. Things have been a little bit hectic since the semester is over now and I had final assignments due, and I didn't want to keep you guys waiting for too long! But, my final portfolio assessment is tomorrow, and then I'm done for a month! And that means -if everything goes according to plan- frequent updates! **

Unfortunately because of school, Lilo was unable to help Stitch search for his cousins throughout the day. When she got out of school each day, the duo only had a small amount of time to search before they were required to be home for dinner. The first few nights, Nani had been understanding, and had extended their curfew so they had longer to look for the missing alien. Now that it had been over a week, however, Nani was trying to coerce them back into their previous schedule.

To say the duo was reluctant would be an understatement, but they knew they had no other choice; they couldn't afford to have Nani mad at them. Technically she could stop them both from going out at all, and they knew it was already nice of her to disrupt their usual patterns to give them a little bit longer to search.

Victoria helped whenever she was able, which was most days since her mother adored Lilo. The task the trio had before them tonight? They were going to find Finder. They hadn't seen him in a very long time, and if anyone could find Slushy, it would be him.

The day felt like it dragged on unpleasantly to Lilo, her worry over her Ohana making each minute feel like it was an hour. Her gaze was contantly flicking back to the clock, hoping against hope that by some miracle the day would be over and she could go find Slushy, and put Stitch's poor frazzled mind at ease.

Stitch sat on the roof, worry keeping him glued in place as he listened intently for any sign of trouble in the school. Usually when things started to go wrong, and people started disappearing, it was because they were after him. Following that logic, it stood to reason somebody might try to take Lilo, and that was the last thing he wanted. So he sat, muscles tense, and watched the surrounding area, listened to what was going on and hoped that nothing would go wrong.

Both were immensely relieved when Lilo's final class of the day ended, and as soon as the bell rang she had sprung out of her seat. Victoria was right behind her, grabbing the backpack that her friend had forgotten underneath her desk, and both rushed through the halls of the school. When Lilo burst through the front doors her arms were instantly occupied by her furry blue boyfriend, and she visibly relaxed, some of the worry draining from her body. Stitch was okay. Nobody had taken him away.

She held him close and Victoria couldn't help but smile as she watched her friends relax, visibly feeling more at ease just from being around one another.

"Ready?" she asked, holding the backpack out to her friend.

"Ih" Stitch nodded, while Lilo slung the bag over her shoulder and smiled in thanks.

She set Stitch down and he dropped onto all fours as the group began walking, trying to seem as though everything was fine. They thought they were in the clear, when they heard a throat cleared behind them. Lilo turned, back tensed as though she thought there would be trouble, and she relaxed again when she realized it was just Mertle.

"Oh, Aloha Mertle" she greeted

"Aloha Lilo" she offered a smile "You guys didn't collect your reports" she held them out toward the girls, whom let out noises of relief. "Is everything okay?"

"Um..." Lilo hesitated

Mertle blinked and raised a brow

"Lilo?"

"Have you noticed anything strange going on around the island?" Lilo asked instead

Realization flashed through her eyes

"Oh, that's right, I had something important to tell you" Lilo frowned at the serious look on the girls face, stepping closer

"Mertle? Is everything okay?"

"Gigi said she saw someone take Splodyhead and Plasmoid" Lilo stiffened and Stitch shot up off the ground "Does that mean anything to you?"

Lilo couldn't find the will to make her mouth move. While she had been focusing on biology and math, two more cousins had been taken. Guilt slammed into her full force, making her feel short of breath. Mertle let out a surprised cry when Lilo suddenly stumbled backwards and dropped to the ground in a seated position, legs splayed in front of her, gaze trained on the ground. Victoria crouched next to her and put a hand on her shoulder, Stitch put his hand over hers on the ground, and Mertle crouched in front of the girl. Lilo couldn't bring herself to look up, the words 'selfish' and 'failure' ringing through her head.

"Lilo? Is everything okay?" Mertle prompted

"I'm not sure" she finally responded, not wishing to worry Mertle with the information they already had "I... Just keep Gigi close, okay? Promise me that you'll do that"

The urgency in her tone frightened Mertle, but she knew that the raven was serious. Something big was going on, and she clearly didn't have all the details. From what she knew of her friend, it was because Lilo didn't want her to worry. And maybe that was a good thing. Lilo would tell her when she was ready, and Mertle thought she could wait.

"I promise" she nodded. Lilo was visibly relieved, but before she could reply Mertle spoke once more "Hey, I know something is bugging you, but..." she paused briefly, gaze searching Lilo's before pressing on "But if you ever need to talk to me, I'm here" she offered a grin "I know to be bugging you this much, it must be big, but I also know that you're you, and you'll figure it out" she stood "You and Stitch always do"

She offered one more smile before turning and leaving. After a moment, a smile grew on Lilo's face and she nodded

"Yeah" she beamed "She's right! I can do this! I'm me! We're a team! Everything will be fine. We'll find the cousins!" she leapt to her feet "Come on, we have to talk to Jumba!"

With that she took off, Stitch and Victoria eagerly following.

BOOMBABY

"Jumba!" Lilo cried, bursting through the front door "Jumba we need to talk to you!"

"He's in the ship" Pleakley informed them, entering the room and offering a smile "How was your day?"

Her face fell

"Two more experiments were taken" she muttered

Pleakley reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder

"Don't worry" he offered a smile "You'll find them"

Her smile returned at his reassurance, and she tossed her backpack onto the couch, Victoria following her example

"We're going to go talk to Jumba" she told the alien

He nodded his head

"Tell him to come inside soon, it's not good for him to be hiding away in that lab all day"

She giggled

"Alright" she nodded "I will"

BOOMBABY

Days passed, and they had no luck finding any of the missing experiments. They had learned that this wasn't a recent thing, however, by speaking with all of the cousins they could get in contact with. They learned that for approximately a year now experiments had been disappearing; it had started as one or two a month, and now was clearly building up to be more than that. As well as learning about this, they also found out that there were 16 more missing experiments they hadn't even known were missing, which made them feel like complete garbage.

Lilo sighed as she sat on the couch, list in her hand. The list now contained the numbers 444, 123, 298, 469, 456, 399, 368, 620, 601, 301, 507, 555, 615, 101, 005, and 006, as well as Slushy and the ones from the other day. She clenched it in her fist and stuffed it into her pocket, hanging her head over the back of the couch

"I don't know what to do, Stitch" she said honestly, turning her gaze upon the alien laying beside her

A heavy sigh escaped him

"Meega naga nota gabba do" he muttered miserably

She turned her head fully so she could watch her best friend, brows furrowingin concern. For the first time since this all started happening, it struck her that Stitch quite possibly felt worse about this than she did. It was reasonable to think he'd feel that way as well; he looks upon himself as a protector, and feels miserable when he fails.

"Hey" she whispered, pulling her legs up onto the couch and reaching out, grabbing the alien off the back of the couch and pulling him into her arms. He made a noise of surprise, but after a moment she felt his claws grasping at her shirt, and his face was pressed into her chest. "It's okay" she whispered

However helpless they felt, she knew they would get through it. They always did, no matter what. Why would they fail now?

BOOMBABY

Jumba made a noise of surprise in the back of his throat when his computer came up with no results. His eyes narrowed and he practically slammed his large fingers onto the buttons, his agitation seeping into his movements, and it took Pleakley's hand on his arm for him to stop. Jumba heaved out a sigh before turning to face his friend

"What?" was all he said

Pleakley offered a small smile

"I don't know what you're working on, but you shouldn't stay in here. Come on" he tugged Jumba's arm, and the scientist sighed heavily and got to his feet, allowing the noodle to lead him out of the room, defeat in his posture.

Neither saw the screen light up red, flashing in white the number 625.

**Reviews are love darlings~**


	4. Creatures

_Previously in Into the Stars_

_"I don't know what you're working on, but you shouldn't stay in here. Come on" he tugged Jumba's arm, and the scientist sighed heavily and got to his feet, allowing the noodle to lead him out of the room, defeat in his posture._

_Neither saw the screen light up red, flashing in white the number 625._

**Now**

Lilo groaned, rolling over and pulling her pillow over her head when she heard a loud scream, the sound drilling into her brain and causing her pain.

"Quiet" she tried to protest, voice muffled by her pillow, and at her side she heard Stitch grunt in agreement

"What is that noise?" Mertle finally asked, annoyance sneaking into her tone as she finally pushed herself up and glared toward the lift to the room

"I don't know" Victoria grumbled, lifting her head to glance at Lilo, just as Stitch lurched upwards, ears twitching

"Stitch?" Lilo asked, sitting up when she felt the experiment tense up beside her "Is everything okay?"

"Cousin!" he cried, leaping forward and diving down the shaft of the lift. The three girls shared a glance before scrambling out of their makeshift beds and calling the lift

By the time they made it to the ground floor Stitch was already flying out the door, screaming for Lilo to follow him as he went. The girl called anapology to a very confused Nani as she took off, neglecting her sandals so she wouldn't fall farther behind than she already was.

And so, three pyjama-clad girls and an alien experiment rushed through the forest of Kaua'i. They skidded to a stop in the middle of a clearing, Lilo bumping into Stitch due to the sudden stop, and only then did she notice that Millie had been leading them. The grey and pink cat-like experiment turned her wide eyes on them

"This is where I last saw him! You have to hurry!"

"Takka Millie" Stitch spoke, straining to keep his voice soothing as he placed a hand on her shoulder "Get to safety"

She nodded, and turned and took off as fast as she could

"Stitch? What was that about? Who's missing?" Lilo asked worriedly

Stitch turned, black eyes filled with guilt

"Reuben" he muttered

She took a startled step back, crashing into Mertle's chest, and her gaze flicked rapidly around the clearing, as if he was there and they just hadn't noticed.

"Reuben!?" she finally cried, heart aching for the sandwhich maker that was one of her closest friends "Reuben can you hear me!?"

"Help!" came a scream from several yards away

Lilo and Stitch shared a glance and took off, tearing through the brush and into yet another clearing, where they found Reuben and Angel surrounded by several tall dark figures. From what Lilo and Stitch could see, they didn't have any distinguishable features.

"Stitch, who are these guys?" Lilo hissed to the alien

"Meega naga nota" he frowned

"We need to think of a plan of attack" Mertle insisted from behind them

"Meega have a plan!" Angel cried, and the group tensed, not having realized they could be heard "Attack!" she lunged at the creature that leapt for Reuben, quickly taking it to the ground

Stitch groaned at his cousin's headstrong behaviour

"Naga bootifa" he muttered "Oketaka, weega do this now, and weega win!" he turned and took off, skidding to a stop a few feet away from one of the black figures. His extra arms escaped and he bared his teeth "Goocha!" the creature turned "Chabata!"

The creature grinned, revealing rows of sharp teeth, and it parted them as it dove for the blue furred experiment with speed Stitch almost couldn't match, diving out of the way with barely a second to spare.

"Lilo!" he called "Get Angel and run! Meega get Reuben!"

"Okay!" she called back, turning to face her friends "You girls wait here" she told them firmly "I don't want you getting hurt"

"But what about you?" Victoria protested

"I'm used to this" she replied, turning and taking off, leaving her friends in the bushes

"Angel!" the pink experiment whirled "heads up!" her hands were outstretched as she leapt, and the pink experiment tensed, ears twitching as she heard someone approaching from behind.

Her eyes widened in slight panic; if she turned now, Lilo could hurt herself, but if she didn't, then they could both get captured. Her gaze shot to the girls hands, and without a second thought she leapt up and caught them, landing and spinning herself around. Lilo caught on with barely a second to act, and kicked the creature in the head, sending it flying back into some bushes.

Lilo was dropped on the seat of her pants gently and both stared when the thing stood, head twisted at a bizarre angle, and it reached up, pure white eyes staring at them as its clawed hands grasped its head and jerked it back into a normal position. Lilo's jaw dropped and she turned to face Angel.

"We have to get out of here" she breathed, yanking the experiment into her arms and taking off as fast as he feet could carry her.

"Isa coming!" Angel screamed shrilly, fur on her back raising

Lilo glanced over her shoulder and felt fear stab through her chest as the creature tore after them through the clearing, easily gaining ground on the young girl

"Stitch!" she screamed, and barely a second later the creature was tackled to the ground, and suddenly Reuben was flying through the air toward her, having been thrown toward her by Stitch.

The orange experiment let out a screech and Lilo threw out her arms, stumbling back slightly when he crashed into her arms. Now clinging to two terrified experiments, the girl stared in horror as the creatures turned their attentions upon Stitch.

"Go! Phaa thoy gho!" he screamed toward the girl

"No- Stitch I'm not running!" she yelled back "I-"

"Boojiboo go!" he screamed desperately

Lilo hesitated for a moment before turning on her heel and taking off into the woods. It didn't wake long for her to locate Mertle and Victoria, and handed the experiments to them

"Take them to my house" she told them firmly "I'll be back in a few minutes"

"Lilo what are you going to do?" Mertle asked worriedly, clinging to Angel as the experiment shook in terror

"What I have to. Get them home. Please. It's the only place I can keep them safe"

"Okay" Mertle nodded, knowing it was no use to argue

Victoria grabbed her arm

"You better come home"

Lilo nodded

"I will"

With that, the group separated, Mertle and Victoria running back to the Pelekai residence while Lilo ran back toward Stitch and the creatures holding him.

"Ah, pathetic little 626" the creature hissed, claws dragging along his body as his friends held the struggling alien down "Look what has become of you. It must be embarassing to be so pathetic" it hissed, trailing a claw down the side of his face

Stitch snapped at it

"Naga as bad as looking like yuuga!" he spat

The creatures face contorted in disgust

"Why you-" he began, breaking off when his friend chuckled. The smile returned to his face "One day, little one, you will understand what it is like to have a face like mine" he hissed, trailing a glowing white tongue over its jagged teeth "You'll watch helplessly as we murder everyone you love" he breathed, drool dripping down its face as it paused to cackle "And only then, when you're screaming and begging for mercy, we will trap your mind and take your body, and you'll relive every second that you watched your family get slaughtered"

Stitch snapped his teeth at the creature once more, and the creature chuckled

"Just you wait, little one. Just you-" it broke off when Lilo stepped into the clearing

"Hey!" she screamed "Let him go!"

The greature smiled sickly and chuckled

"You want him? Take him" he grabbed Stitch around the throat and hurled him at the girl, whom caught him and held him to her chest, glare fixed on the creatures standing before her "He will be ours soon enough" he disappeared in a flash and was suddenly right behind her "Enjoy him while you can, little girl"

He reappeared with his friends, and she backed up a few hurried steps. The creatures friends made to follow, and he held out an arm

"Let her go" it smiled cruelly "It will be her turn soon enough"

Lilo swallowed the dread building inside her and turned and ran as fast as she could, not seeing when the creatures disappeared.


End file.
